The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 13

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 13.
Bu Eunseol emerged from the Intermediate Hall after a single month.
Thundering Unparalleled Strike.
It was Cheon Woon Gwang’s secret martial art, and to master the essence of the killing blade, Bu Eunseol had spent a full month—an extraordinary investment of time.
Compared to mastering the Beast Path, which was deemed nearly impossible to learn, in merely half a month, this represented an immense dedication.
‘That was truly exhausting.’
As I walked toward the Advanced Hall, I felt the weight of challenge for the first time.
Over the past month, I had not merely learned sword techniques. I had absorbed the theoretical foundations of orthodox martial arts that I had never encountered before.
I had to cram the essential principles of ascending martial arts—knowledge that should be cultivated slowly over years—into my mind within a single month.
That agonizing and torturous process was nearly impossible to articulate.
Click.
As I opened the door to the Advanced Hall, my expression grew peculiar.
Surprisingly, the Advanced Hall resembled an academy for scholarly learning far more than a martial training ground.
The interior, shaped in a semicircle, contained a raised platform, beneath which were arranged tables and chairs.
Standing upon the platform was an elderly man with white hair pinned up—Dan Cheon Yang, the instructor of the Advanced Hall.
“I am Bu Eunseol.”
As our eyes met, I clasped my hands respectfully.
“I have been training under Instructor Cheon Woon Gwang and have now advanced to the Advanced Hall today.”
“Yes, I have heard. A martial talent of considerable skill, they say.”
Dan Cheon Yang smiled warmly and gestured toward an empty seat.
“Come, sit. I was just about to begin.”
As I took my seat, I felt the piercing gazes of the other trainees upon me.
‘It is different.’
I could sense it clearly.
The contemptuous stares that had clung to me relentlessly until now had vanished. Now I felt only curiosity, awe, and perhaps envy.
And the reason was that I had struck down Byeok Han Sung in a single blow.
‘For something so trivial?’
Revulsion rose within me.
Cleaning corpses earned scorn, yet a martial artist slaying another earned reverence and admiration?
I, who pursued martial arts solely for vengeance, could not comprehend this cruel and merciless world of the martial realm.
“Then let us begin today’s dharma discourse.”
Dan Cheon Yang, who had been glancing at me, spoke in a low voice from the platform.
“Since a new trainee has arrived, I shall explain once more the Song Principles and Seven Teachings of the Hwawoo Sword. Power pervades the entire body, the stance stands centered and upright, the chest is contained and the back extended, one strike has not yet penetrated deeply…”
The Song Principles of the Hwawoo Sword, which destroyed all things like torrential rain, differed little from the sword arts of any other sect.
Viewed differently, it demonstrated how much emphasis was placed upon fundamentals.
‘So this is it.’
As I listened intently to Dan Cheon Yang’s dharma lecture, my eyes narrowed with understanding.
Had I not learned the theory of martial arts and ascending sword techniques in the Intermediate Hall, I could never have comprehended these dharmic principles.
The dharma lecture continued for approximately half an hour.
“Let us conclude today’s dharmic interpretation here.”
Dan Cheon Yang closed the book and descended from the platform with a hunched gait, speaking as he moved.
“The five individuals the Elder pointed out before. And you, who just arrived—follow me.”
Noticing Bu Eunseol’s bewildered expression, Dan Cheon Yang spoke in a gentle voice.
“There’s no need to be anxious. We’re simply heading to the Training Grounds to refine sword techniques.”
Upon stepping outside, the Training Grounds laid with blue stone tiles came into view.
The sunlight was warm, and a refreshing spring breeze drifted from somewhere.
Peaceful.
Had I not endured the Second Hall’s trial. Had I not risked my life in a death match against Byeok Han Sung in the Intermediate Hall….
Even I might have been intoxicated by the leisurely, tranquil atmosphere of the Advanced Hall.
‘It won’t be long before blood is demanded again.’
I could stake my life on it.
Once the Martial Hall’s trials concluded, all this peace would vanish like foam.
“Come closer.”
Dan Cheon Yang gestured upon noticing me lagging behind, lost in thought.
“The time for learning is limited. Cast aside idle thoughts.”
Dan Cheon Yang appeared as though he could peer into my very mind.
“My apologies.”
As I lowered my head, Dan Cheon Yang smiled broadly.
“There’s no need to apologize to me.”
In the vast Training Grounds, spanning some three hundred square meters, six trainees including myself had gathered in a circle, with Dan Cheon Yang standing at the center in his characteristically hunched posture.
“Today, we shall discuss the principle of Triumph Without Blade—Victory With Blade.”
Dan Cheon Yang drew forth a skeletal branch tucked at his waist.
In that instant, behind his gaunt and hunched frame, an aura reminiscent of a colossal mountain suddenly erupted.
“According to Cheon Woon Gwang’s account, you have only recently begun studying the blade—or rather, martial arts.”
Dan Cheon Yang’s gaze remained fixed upon me.
“Is this true?”
I nodded without hesitation.
“Yes, it is.”
In that moment, the eyes of the surrounding trainees shifted.
The one who struck down Byeok Han Sung, a disciple of the Sura Sword Sect, in a single blow had only just begun learning martial arts?
Thump.
In that instant, the trainees’ gazes transformed entirely.
―Impossible!
Yet they had to believe it.
To lie before Dan Cheon Yang, the Advanced Hall’s instructor and elder of the Hwawoo Sword Sect, would mean having no place to call home in the Demonic Path’s martial world—let alone among the Ten Demon Experts.
‘This is troublesome.’
Feeling the gazes pouring down from all directions, my brow furrowed slightly.
―I must not draw attention.
The truth I learned upon passing through the Second Hall’s deadly trial was this: I must never attract the eyes of the other trainees.
To be noticed was to become a target of vigilance.
“Hmm. I see.”
Regardless of whether the trainees shifted their attention, Dan Cheon Yang continued to direct his words toward me.
“Then, do you perhaps know anything about the principles of swordless sword mastery?”
“I do not.”
“I see. Then allow me to explain it simply.”
Dan Cheon Yang, smiling faintly, glanced at a branch and continued speaking matter-of-factly.
“Swordless sword mastery is, as the name suggests, a realm where one can defeat an opponent wielding a blade even without a sword. In other words, it is a state where there are no constraints in executing sword techniques, whether one possesses a blade or not.”
As he spoke of such profound sword principles, Dan Cheon Yang’s voice gradually grew more forceful.
“To reach the realm of swordless sword mastery, the boundary between arm and blade must disappear. Can anyone here discern what this truly means?”
Only then did Dan Cheon Yang withdraw his gaze from me and look toward the surrounding trainees.
Yet no one answered. The Demonic Path swordsmen emphasized practical combat above all; there were no discussions of sword principles or the depths of martial philosophy.
“Is it not similar in meaning to the unity of hand and blade, or the unity of spirit and blade?”
After a prolonged silence, a boy bearing an iron sword on his back stepped forward, and Dan Cheon Yang’s lips curved into a faint smile.
“It differs somewhat. The unity of hand and blade means wielding the sword as freely as one’s blood-filled hand, while the unity of spirit and blade is a realm where the body itself becomes the sword.”
And Dan Cheon Yang’s gaze fixed upon me once more.
“What say you? Can you discern what it means for the boundary between arm and blade to vanish?”
I remained silent.
Yet Dan Cheon Yang waited for my response with patience and persistence.
“In my estimation….”
Breaking the long silence, I slowly opened my mouth.
“Is it not the mastery of the boundary between existence and non-existence?”
It was an ambiguous answer.
Yet upon hearing it, Dan Cheon Yang’s lips curved into a meaningful smile.
“It seems you truly are a novice to the sword arts.”
At Dan Cheon Yang’s words, all the trainees suppressed their smirks.
―So she was merely pretending to be a prodigy… and tried to mask it with a plausible answer.
―Seeing how Instructor Dan speaks, it appears she really is a complete beginner.
Hearing the trainees’ whispered mockery, Dan Cheon Yang looked at me and spoke in a voice barely audible.
“Otherwise, how could one fathom the enlightenment of a peerless swordmaster who has walked between life and death for decades?”
In that moment, the trainees’ eyes wavered like ripples on water.
Judging by the situation, was what I had said not remarkably sound?
“I merely ventured a guess.”
“Hehehehe. That may well be so.”
Dan Cheon Yang, wearing a satisfied smile, spoke to me in a low voice.
“Are you not curious why this old man has questioned you so persistently?”
“I am.”
“While you were in the Intermediate Hall, all the trainees here mastered the first technique of the Hwawoo Sword—the Profound Mystery—and have now moved into sword theory.”
He walked closer to me and spoke in a tone far colder than before.
“But because you abruptly inserted yourself in the middle, I find myself in a difficult position. Do you understand what I mean?”
I nodded.
Until now, I had been fortunate enough to receive one-on-one instruction from Jin Gak and Cheon Woon Gwang.
However, the Advanced Hall was where only those with the aptitude to truly master the Hwawoo Sword were selected. There could be no exceptions to the training.
“If you cannot immediately comprehend and follow what I am about to teach you, I intend to cast you out at once.”
Dan Cheon Yang regarded the five trainees standing behind Bu Eunseol with piercing eyes.
“The same applies to all of you. You have come to the Advanced Hall, yet you have not properly mastered the fundamental sword techniques.”
A heavy silence, dense as lead, settled over the vast Training Grounds.
“If you likewise fail to immediately comprehend and grasp the sword principles I expound today, you must leave the Martial Hall that our sect has established.”
Only then did Bu Eunseol understand why Dan Cheon Yang had summoned the five trainees and herself separately.
‘He intends to verify whether we are worthy of remaining in the Advanced Hall.’
The Hwawoo Sword Sect, called the foremost sword sect of the Demonic Path.
The process of learning its sword arts was never easy.
“Since you seem to grasp the principle of ‘no sword surpassing the sword’ to some degree… I shall first question you.”
A flash of light erupted.
In an instant, Dan Cheon Yang brought a thin branch mere inches from Bu Eunseol’s brow.
“Had I been wielding a longsword, the point would have pierced the space between your eyes.”
He then withdrew his hand and posed a question to Bu Eunseol.
“You have just been attacked without warning, but if you possessed no sword in your hand—how would you execute sword techniques?”
“If I had no sword in my hand…”
“Let me be clear: this is a question premised upon actual combat. Should you offer vague answers, it would be better not to answer at all.”
A sigh escaped involuntarily from Bu Eunseol’s lips.
Engaging in philosophical discourse about swordplay seemed far more difficult than surviving in the crucible of extreme combat and decisive battles.
Then, her gaze suddenly met Dan Cheon Yang’s sharp eyes.
‘If this were real combat…’
Even without a sword, or armed only with that slender branch, Dan Cheon Yang could have easily pierced through my skull.
‘I have no sword. I possess no sword…’
Having grasped something at last, Bu Eunseol nodded.
“You said the opponent would certainly be wielding a sword.”
And with confident resolve, she met Dan Cheon Yang’s gaze directly.
“I would seize my opponent’s sword. That is the ‘no sword surpassing the sword’ I can achieve right now.”
A swift motion.
Bu Eunseol then moved with lightning speed, reaching for the branch Dan Cheon Yang held.
“A hasty conclusion.”
Dan Cheon Yang, a faint smile on his lips, lightly struck Bu Eunseol’s wrist with the technique of Shattering the Void.
“?”
Yet Dan Cheon Yang’s technique never fully unfolded.
Bu Eunseol, having anticipated his movement beforehand, had already burrowed into his inner guard.
“…!”
Dan Cheon Yang’s mouth opened, but no sound emerged.
As an elder of the Hwawoo Sword Sect, his martial prowess stood as far above Bu Eunseol’s as heaven above earth.
Yet the reason Bu Eunseol could close the distance was her extraordinary eye for reading techniques through hand movements alone.
And it was due to the terrifyingly sharp functionality of the Wild Beast Blade.
“Hehehehe….”
Dan Cheon Yang, who had been standing with his mouth agape for some time, burst into hearty laughter.
“Ahahahahaha!”
As he pointed at Bu Eunseol’s face as if he had discovered something amusing, his laughter rang out,
“You pass.”
He patted Bu Eunseol’s shoulder and nodded approvingly.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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